Apparatus for drafting textile fibers



1950 E. BONALUMI 2,948,023

APPARATUS FOR DRAFTING TEXTILE FIBERS Filed Aug. 5, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

Z (u rrl Aug. 9, 1960 E. BONALUMI 2,948,023

APPARATUS FOR DRAFTING TEXTILE FIBERS Filed Aug. 5, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR. M

Aug. 9, 1960 E. BONALUMI APPARATUS FOR DRAFTING TEXTILE FIBERS 5 Sheets-;Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 5, 1957 JNVENTOR.

Aug. 9, 1.960 E. BONALUMI 2,943,023

APPARATUS FOR DRAFTING TEXTILEFIBERS Filed Aug. 5, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 ll lhll I HIIII zvvmroa.

Aug. 9, 1.960 E. BONALUMI 2,948,023

' APPARATUS FOR DRAFTING TEXTILE FIBERS Filed Aug. 5, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 65 9 v I I 7 15 United States Patent APPARATUS FOR DRAFTING TEXTILE FIBERS Ettore Boualumi, Bergamo, Italy Ing. A. Giambrocono, via Durini 4, Milan, Italy) Filed Aug. 5, 1957, Ser. No. 676,302

Claims. (Cl. 19-130) This is a continuation-in-part of my copending application S.N. 455,038, filed August 11, 1954, and now abandoned.

This invention relates to an improved apparatus for drawing textile fibers, particularly for natural or synthetic fibers of short, average and long length.

An object of this invention is to provide an apparatus which improves the efiiciency of known equipments, and the reliability and safety of the operation particularly in the event of a miscarriage of the sliver.

According to the present invention the above object is achieved by providing an apparatus for drawing textile fibers immediately after dofiing from a carding machine, comprising in combination: means for condensing the web into the form of a sliver; a pair of cooperating driven feed rollers; a pair of cooperating driven delivery rollers having a drawing action therebetwcen; supports on said frame for the rotatable shafts of said rollers arranged so that the horizontal pitch of said lower rollers is greater than that of said upper rollers and is almost equal to the average length of the fiber to be treated; a porcupine revolving roller mounted between said pairs of rollers; a rotary brush mounted below said needle roller and adapted to engagethe bottom of said needle roller and the periphery of the lower rollers; an upper cleaning roller loosely mounted and adapted to engage both said upper rollers; pressure means for exerting a pressure between said delivery rollers greater than that between said feed rollers.

The delivery rollers are so arranged that the slivers are in contact with the upper rollers for a substantial peripheral portion of the same and thus a supplementary smooth drawing and guiding action is obtained.

Moreover by arranging an upper rotatable cleaning roller and a rotary brush, the speed of which is kept 25% greater than of that of said needle roller, simple improved and durable clearing means are provided.

In order to provide a smoother combing action and to prevent the fibers from being irregularly advanced it is proposed in accordance with this invention to set the peripheral speed of the needle roller slower than that of the feed rollers.

, Both the delivery and feed roller pairs are pivoted in stationary supports of the frame, since, in order to accomplish the passage of the slivers during the starting operation, the needle roller (with the rotary brush) is automatically lowered by raising the cover of the equipment.

According to a further feature of the present invention, a telescopic coupling means is provided for the needle roller and the rotary brush so that removal of the said rollers for cleaning or substitution thereof can be easily carried out.

A preferred constructional form of the invention is shown by way of example, in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a cross sectional view of the equipment.

Figure 2 is a front view of a funnel for the web condensing.

Figure 3 is a view of a link arrangement pressure device operating on the drawing rollers.

Figure 4 is a view of the lower roller drive gearing.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of drive gearing for the needle roller and the rotary clearing brush.

Figure 6 is an axial sectional view of the main drive gearing provided with a friction coupling.

'Figure 7 is a sectional view of a coupling provided for the drive of the rollers and of the rotary clearing brush.

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the equipment as fitted to a carding engine.

Figure 9 is a section of a further condensing funnel, with the sliver being passed between a pair of calender rollers.

Referring now to Figs. 1 to 9 inclusive of the aocompanying drawings:

The web 1, coming from a conventional carding engine, is fed into a funnel 2, having an outlet 3, preferably in the shape of a figure eight in order to exert a restricting action on the web 1, and to facilitate the flow thereof in the form of a sliver 1, and moreover to thicken and strengthen the selvedges thereof.

The sliver 1' is then passed between two driving rollers 4 and 5, the peripheral speed of which must obviously be equal to that required by the specific manufacturing process being performed, and which is substantially equal to the speed of a doifer (not shown).

The roller 4, preferably driven by a suitable drive fromthe mechanical drive gearing of the carding machine, is made of steel, and has axial flutes, while the upper pressure roller 5 is preferably lined with rubberor the like, in order to obtain an efficient driving and drawing engagement on the sliver. t

The required extraction is obtained by means of a pair of rollers 6 and 7 (delivery rollers), i.e. by a steel fluted roller 6 similar to the roller 4, and an upper pressure roller 7 lined with rubber or the like, in the same manner as the roller 5.

The ratio of the peripheral speed of the pairs of rollers 5, 4; 6, 7 may be varied between 1.30 and 1.70, according to the material being processed.

The horizontal distance between the axes of rollers 5--7 is smaller that between rollers 6-4 and is substantially equal to the long fibers to be treated (i.e. 50 mm.).

. The sliver 1', while being advanced by the pairs of rollers 45, 6-7, is acted upon by the needle roller 8, rotatably mounted between the two pairs of the rollers 45, 67 in such a manner that the path of the needle points is at a distance of 1 mm. above the surface of roller 6.

In order to facilitate the penetration of needles into the sliver, the needle roller 8 is driven at a peripheral speed slightly lower than that of the feed rollers 4 and 5, whereby a smoother combing action is obtained.

The sliver 1' comes out of the delivery side in the form of a fiat strip (Figures 8, 9) and is then fed by a sliver guide roller 9 to a condensing funnel 64, by which a circular shape is imparted thereto, whereupon it is passed to calender rollers 63, and finally into a can 65.

The peripheral speed of said rollers 63 will be sub stantially equal to the speed at which the sliver 1' is de livered from the equipment.

A wooden clearer roller 10, which is preferably covered with a cloth, is freely mounted so that it performs a clearing actionon the rollers 5 and 7 by means of its weight. I I I A rotary brush 11 having radially arranged bristles is adapted to maintain the needles of the needle roller 8 clean and clear, while clearing at the same time the fluted rollers 4 and 6. A further clearing action is exerted on the fluted roller 6 by a smaller brush 12, mounted in a fixed position with respect to a sliver supporting plate 13.

Preferably the peripheral speed of rotary brush 11 is maintained 25% higher than the peripheral speed of the needle roller.

Said link arrangement pressure device comprises: a double U shaped pressure lever 15, which is manually actuated and has its end arms 15 turnable on stationary pivot 16, whereby end portion 15" of lever 15 is midway hooked by a U-shaped handle 17, which is mounted pivotably on said frame; two bridge plates 14 urging upon the shafts of said upper rollers and 7 by means of springs 19 arranged between the arms 15' of said pressure lever 15 and said bridge plates 14.

In order to provide a difference of pressure, distance D of'upper delivery roller 7 from the axis of said springs 19 is kept smaller than distance d from the upper feed roller 5.

The pressure exerted on the pair of rollers 6-7 of the drawing unit, is therefore higher than that exerted on the roller pair 4--5; said differential pressure will be constant for every application of the equipment, and limited to a value just sufiicient for a proper drawing of the sliver 1'.

.The protective covering of the draw unit consists of a movable cover 20, hinged to pivot 16 and provided with lugs 21, by which the clearer roller is supported and a cover 22, hinged to said pivot 16 and by which the sliver guide roller 9 is supported.

The whole equipment unit is in its turn supported and protected by a suitable frame, consisting of a base 23, side walls 24 and rear wall 25.

lIhe fluted rollers 4 and 6 are driven by a train of sprocket wheels 27, 28, 29 and 30, connected to one another by means of sprocket chain 31, the drive system being actuated by a gear 32 which in turn is driven by a drive member of the carding machine.

A highly eflicient friction stopping device is embodied in the equipment and comprises a disc clutch B3 and a flexible disc plate 35, urged against the disc clutch 33 by adjusting nuts 38' and 38, whereby pressure is transmitted through friction washers '3637 to sprodket wheel 27, freely rotatable on the shaft 34, which latter is keyed to the driving gear 32.

The clutch 33 will therefore slip if the sliver 1' is wound, or is even partially wound, round the fluted roller 6, whereby it jams against the sliver supporting plate 13. The increase of resistance torque with respect to the usual drive torque causes the clutch 33 to be disengaged and the sprocket wheel 27 is thus stopped. A similar condition arises when the sliver 1' is wound round the fluted roller 4, or the pressure roller 5 and 7, since increase in the diameter of the latter will cause a corresponding increase of resistance torque.

The tensioning device for the driving chain 31 consists of a sector 39, pivotally mounted on a stationary pivot 40 secured on one side of the frame and the relative position of the sprocket wheel 29 can thus be adjusted to a required position by means of this sector, which can be locked in position by means of a set screw 41.

The needle roller 8 and rotary brush 11 are brought into operation by means of a pinion 43 loosely mounted on a second sector 42, which is similar to sector 39, but arranged on the opposite side of the device (Figure 5), said pinion 43 being driven by a pinion 44 on the fluted roller 4.

A rotary motion can therefore be imparted to the said needle roller 8 and rotary brush 11 which are supported by two supporting slides 45, slidable along the guide slots 52a and connected to sliding plates 52. A gear 46, mounted keyed on the. shaft 49 is mounted on one of the said slides 45 and drives the needle roller 8, while a gear 47, loosely fitted on an axle 50, also secured to said slide 45, serves on intermediate gear 48 keyed on a shaft, 51. This latter controls the rotary brush 11, causing it to rotate in the same direction as the needle roller 8. Said slides 45 are moved downwards by pressure exerted by a cam 53 acting on an adjustable rod 54 with which each slide 45 is provided, the cam 53 being controlled by a finger 55 actuated by a cam 55 secured to the pivot 16 fixed to the cover 22. Raising of the cover 22 causes rotation of the pin 16 which in turn drives cam 55' into sliding engagement with cam 53, the cam 53 thus pressing the rod 54 downwards each time said cover 22 is lifted.

Each slide 45 is provided with a return spring 56 acting on a rod 57 secured to the slides 45, whereby the whole comber clearer unit is held in a pre-established work position, as long as the cover 22 is kept lowered, during operation.

A spring mounted telescopic system fitted on both ends of the shafts of the needle roller 8 and the rotary brush 11, permits quick easy removal and reassembly of the needle roller 8 and the rotary brush 11, as well as an instantaneous engagement thereof on their driving shafts.

The aforesaid telescopic system for the needle roller 8 comprises a bush 58, slidably fitted on the end of the shaft 8 provided with a hollow portion 8", wherein spring 59 is fitted. The end of shaft 8' is connected to a retaining pin 61 slidable along the slot 60 in said bush 58. The front end of the bush 58 is provided with a set of pins which can be brought into engagement with corresponding holes on a disc plate 62 secured to the driving shaft 49 of a driving gear 46, forming part of a drive gear train. A similar clutch system is provided on both ends of rotary brush shaft 50.

While the invention has been described in some detail, it is to be understood that the above description is for the purpose of illustration only. In particular, changes may be made in the design and details of the drawing, combing, adjusting and condensing devices, to make them more suitable to practical requirements; moreover, the inventive idea may also be carried into effect by means different from, but equivalent to those described above.

What I claim is:

1. An apparatus for drawing textile fibres in the form of a web immediately after dotting from a carding machine comprising in combination, means for condensing the web into a sliver, a frame, a pair of co-operating driven feed rollers mounted on rotatable shafts arranged one above the other, a pair of co-operating delivery rollers mounted on rotatable shafts arranged one above the other, said feed rollers and said delivery. rollers having a drawing action therebetween, a stationary support on said frame for the rotatable shafts of said rollers arranged such that the distance between the axes of the top feed roller and the top delivery roller is smaller than the distance between the axes of the lower feed roller and the lower delivery roller, the distance between the axes of the lower rollers being approximately equal to the average length of fibre to be treated, a revolving needle roller, mounted between said feed rollers and said delivery rollers, a rotary brush below said needle (roller mounted to clean said needle roller, and at the same time to clean the periphery of said lower feed roller and said lower delivery roller, resilient pressure means arranged to urge said top delivery roller against said bottom delivery roller, and said top feed roller against said bottom feedroller and means for distributing the force exerted by said pressure means such that the pressure exerted between said delivery rollers is greater than the pressure between said feed rollers.

2. An apparatus for drawing textile fibres in the form. of a web as claimed in claim 1 wherein said pressure means comprise a pressure lever, pivotally connected to. said frame and having extension arms extending above raw a rin s said delivery roller, bridge means acting between said upper feed roller and said upper delivery roller, spring means acting between said pressure lever extension arms and said bridge means, said means for distributing the force exerted by said spring means being provided by arranging the axis of said spring means to pass closer to the axis of rotation of said delivery roller than to the axis of rotation of said feed roller.

3. An apparatus for drawing textile fibres in the form of a web immediately after dofling from a carding machine comprising in combination, a cover, means for condensing the web into a sliver, a frame, driving means for the apparatus, .a pair of co-operating driven feed rollers mounted on rotatable shafts arranged one above the other, a pair of co-operating delivery rollers mounted on rotatable shafts arranged one above the other, said feed rollers and said delivery rollers having a drawing action therebetween, a stationary support on said frame for the rotatable shafts of said rollers arranged such that the distance between the axes of the top feed roller and the top delivery roller is smaller than the distance between the axes of the lower feed roller and the lower delivery roller, the distance between the axes of the lower rollers being approximately equal to the average length of fibre to be treated, a revolving needle roller mounted between said feed rollers and said \del-ivery rollers, a rotary brush below said needle roller mounted to clean said needle roller and at the same time to clean the periphery of said lower feed roller and said lower delivery roller, resilient pressure means arranged to exert a greater pressure on the delivery rollers than on the feed rollers, slides arranged to support bearing means for said rotary brush and said needle roller, said slides being loaded upwardly to urge said rotary brush and said needle roller into a driving engagement with the driving means of the apparatus, means for displacing said slides downwardly into a position where said brush shaft and said needle shaft are disengaged from said driving means.

4. An apparatus for drawing textile fibres in the form of a web according to claim 3 wherein said slides are urged upwardly by spring means and said slide displacement means comprise cams, positively connected to said cover and arranged to displace said slides through pivotally mounted finger members, displacement of said cover upwardly causing the slides to be displaced downwardly against said spring means to disengage said needle roller and said brush roller from the said driving means of the apparatus.

5. An apparatus for drawing textile fibres in the form of a web immediately after doflflng from a carding machine comprising in combination means for condensing the web into a sliver, a frame, a pair of cooperating driven feed rollers mounted on rotatable shafts arranged one above the other, a pair of co-operating delivery rollers mounted on rotatable shafts arranged one above the other, said feed rollers and said delivery rollers having a drawing action therebetween, a stationary support on said frame for the rotatable shafts of said rollers arranged such that the distance between the axes of the top feed roller and the top delivery roller is smaller than the distance between the axes of the lower feed roller and the lower delivery roller, the distance between the axes of the lower rollers being approximately equal to the average length of fibre to be treated, a needle roller mounted on a rotatable shaft and located between said feed rollers and said delivery rollers, a. rotary brush having a central shaft therethrough located below said needle roller and mounted to clean said needle roller and at the same time to clean the periphery of said lower delivery roller, resilient pressure means arranged to exert a greater pressure on the delivery rollers than on the feed rollers and quick release means for connecting and disconnecting said rotary brush shaft and said needle roller shaft into and out of said apparatus, each of said quick release means comprising a sleeve, slid'ably mounted on one end of a shaft and presenting an outer end portion having axially extending projections adapted to engage corresponding openings in said apparatus, spring means arranged to act between said sleeve and said shaft to tend said sleeve outwardly of said shaft and retaining means comprising a pin connected to said shaft and engaging an axial slot in said sleeve to permit limited axial displacement of said brush relative to said sleeve while preventing relative rotation therebetween.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,911,930 Schultze May 30, 1933 2,409,255 Cotchett 'Oct. 15, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS 6,199 F-rance Sept. 21, 1906 (Second addition to No. 345,197)

642,332 France Aug. 27, 1928 370,329 Great Britain Apr. 7, 1932 

